Tate
by Brutal Let Down
Summary: Tate. He'd become something of a pet to Nick and Ellis, being the only friendly infected they've encountered. At first, Nick had wanted to off him, but Ellis had been able to make him think otherwise. It wasn't soon after that, though, the two found out how helpful he could be…in more ways than one. AU, MaleXMale, MaleXMale Infected. Don't like, Don't read.
1. Chapter 1

"Today makes day three…right?" Ellis glanced over to Nick, hitching his gun a little higher on his shoulder. The sun beat down on the two survivors, but it wasn't as bad as it had been these past days in the summer. The seasons were slowly changing into Fall, and a light breeze was already rolling through the small town they now traversed.

Nick made a small gesture with his fingers, as if he were counting, "Sounds about right." Then gave a small nod as his eyes refocused down the road. What Ellis meant by the question was it had been three days since the storm that had separated them from Coach and Rochelle. They'd stayed in the small town to hopefully run back into them some time or another. They'd been going through the streets, searching stores and houses for the two, and even though they hadn't seen even a clue to their whereabouts, Ellis was still hopeful.

Nick on the other hand…

"You know we've got to move on eventually, right?" It'd been the first time Nick had openly suggested it, but it had been three days already. To Nick that was more than enough time. In fact, he would've preferred to head out the very next morning without them. The other two were both assholes towards him, and he didn't give a fuck if he rightly deserved to be treated that way.

Ellis gave an incredulous gasp towards Nick, "You're not bein' serious, are'ya? We can't just leave'em, Nick!" Ellis wasn't entirely surprised Nick wanted to up and go without the other half of their quadrant. Hell, Nick wanted to leave Ellis behind once when he took too long to take a piss.

But before Nick could argue his point, the ground suddenly began to tremble and glass in the distance broke and shattered. The duo looked to one another, and even though it was both on their minds, they didn't speak a word. They were so used to the routine, it hardly fazed them anymore. But it would be difficult to take down a Tank with just the two of them, so their regular tactics would do no good. They had to come up with a new plan, and fast. Nick could already hear the monstrous infected getting closer. It sounded like it was around the corner of the building not a few yards away from them.

"Ellis, listen," Nick began, wanting to at least put something together, "If we get separated, we meet back up at the safe house." He looked the mechanic directly in the eye as he told him, wanting to get his point across. "Alright, Nick." Ellis responded, giving a firm nod.

It was all they could say to one another before a thunderous roar ripped through the streets and the Tank broke out onto the avenue they now walked upon. "Aim for the head!" Nick screamed to Ellis, hoisting his gun up to aim and started to backwards jog as he unloaded onto the beast. Ellis soon followed suit, grunting with the effort to ignore the stinging pain in his shoulder from the Jockey ride he suffered not too long ago while he pressed into the trigger.

The Tank only seemed to get annoyed and paused only to scoop its massive paws into the road and lifted with its overgrown muscles to haul the chunk he'd collected over its head. The two had to split to avoid the oncoming chunk of road, sending Ellis into an alleyway, and Nick crashing into a store front. The Tank roared angrily and went after Ellis, having seen where he went, and tromped after him. He didn't get too far though, because Ellis had thought quickly and broke into the back door of an apartment building. He ran through the halls, hoping to break through the front entrance so he could regroup with Nick. He hoped he was alright, he'd seen the fall he'd taken and cringed internally.

But, an awaiting Smoker got to him before he could even get to the lobby. The lanky infected was lurking in an open apartment door, quietly hissing, waiting for his next victim, when Ellis came running right to him. He ran right out in front of him, using Ellis' own momentum to drag him forward after he wrapped his muscled tongue around the young southerner's body. Ellis had screamed, mostly from the shock of the thing jumping right out in front of him, but actual fear didn't register, for the Smoker, sadly, looked to be a younger man, maybe 15 years of age. Ellis didn't have any trouble with wrestling the infected boy to the ground, quickly pulling out his pistol as his other hand tried to keep the Smoker from scratching at his face.

As Ellis got the gun securely to the side of its skull, though, the Smoker flailed unexpectedly, sending Ellis' hand out to the right, and knocking his gun out of reach. He groaned, but braced himself over the squirming, hacking infected to snap its neck.

Bones broke, cracking sharply with a tangible snap, making Ellis cringe in just the slightest, the Smoker's hands going limp to the ground. He sighed, untangling himself from the dead Smoker's tongue so he could stand. A drop of sweat rolled from his forehead and dropped from the tip of his nose as he stared down at the young boy. He hadn't realized they could get infected this young. To cope with these thoughts, when he'd killed his first infected, he'd told himself that it was ok, and that the person would finally be able to rest now. It was something he had to tell himself every night, so he could sleep.

But there was just something about seeing the teenage boy, sprawled dead on the ground, killed from his own hand that… made him feel sick. They'd been at this for over a month now, and Ellis would've thought he'd be over the things like this. Apparently not.

Just as he'd been about ready to step around the body to retrieve his gun, he heard the door to his right creak open.

Ellis' first instinct had been to dive for his gun, but upon hearing no warning growl, hack, or hiss, he realized that it could possibly be a living person on the other side of that door. So, based on that possibility, Ellis stepped forward, reaching out to the door, "Hello? You a'right in there?" he asked, hurriedly, pushing the door in all the way… But then abruptly jumped back, pressing himself against the wall behind him as he came face to face with a crouching Hunter.

"Aww _shit_…" he hissed, bracing himself for the inevitable pounce that was sure to come, turning away and clamping his arms to his chest, so he'd have a way to fight him off…

But the pounce never came, prompting Ellis to peek an eye open.

The Hunter had inched forward, sitting much like a dog on its hind legs, his hands resting on the floor. His left hand of which, sat teasingly close to Ellis' pistol. He gulped, staring at the surprisingly calm infected, its glowing yellow eyes shadowed by its hood. It looked to be inspecting him, his nose twitching as it sniffed the air. He seemed to be more curious than anything else. Ellis was confused, none the less, unsure if he should start to run or wait until the Hunter finally attacked, or maybe got bored and wandered off-"OH GOD!"

The Hunter had hopped, landing just in front of Ellis, scaring him out of his thoughts. He hadn't attacked him, not yet at least, but was getting more adventurous, sniffing along Ellis' leg, his shoes, his stomach. Ellis was sweating bullets, any wrong move and this Hunter could attack, so he kept his arms scrunched on his chest, away from the Hunter. He sorely wished Nick were here right now…

The Hunter had stood to its full height, the infected man being just as tall as Ellis was, but took on a bit of a hunch as he began to lean into Ellis, sniffing along his chest and neck. Ellis made sure to take shallow breaths, not wanting to agitate the Hunter in anyway. He was so nervous, he'd never seen an infected just inspect him like this before, just so calm and collectively.

Ellis suddenly gasped though when the Hunter's tongue came out to lick his face, trailing from his chin, over his cheek and half way to his temple. Ellis' mouth was still agape when the Hunter sat back on its hind legs and looked up to Ellis…with a smile on its face.

Ellis was too shocked at first to even react, so he was still standing with his hands up to his chest as he stared wide eyed at the blank wall in front of him. He slowly looked down to the infected and tried forming words but the Hunter edged closer to his legs and nuzzled at them, his face burying in his coverall pants legs as a noise akin to a purr emitted from him.

Ellis let his arms drop down slowly, a nervous chuckle bubbling from him as he stared down at the Hunter, "Do you like me, or somethin'?" he asked it, not expecting an answer as he daringly reached down to pat at the Hunter's hooded head.

The Hunter seemed to like it because he upturned his face and proceeded to nibble at Ellis' thumb. It wasn't a nibble Ellis was worried about, it felt much like a puppy playing with him with its still sharp baby teeth. What made it cute was the Hunter also growled, though it wasn't any growl he'd ever heard from an infected. It was playful.

Ellis grinned, taking his thumb back to run his hand through the Hunter's hair. The Hunter really liked that, because the next moment he purred and pushed his head upward, encouraging the motion. "Awwe…" Ellis murmured, his nervousness ebbing.

He then crouched down to meet the Hunter at eye level, lightly scratching through the Hunter's hair, "You ain't bad at all, are'ya?" he watched as the Hunter grinned, his eyes closing as it enjoyed the scratches it received.

"How come you ain't attackin' me…huh?" he asked it, though his voice had soon took on a cooing voice that he used when he talked to pets, rubbing both his hands through the Hunter's hair, mussing it. The Hunter growled, turning his head back and forth to try and escape the hands, his mouth opened to take nips at Ellis' wrists.

Ellis chuckled, "You're too cute, you know that?"

Meanwhile, on the floor of a sunglasses store lay Nick, discombobulated and sore. There were a few pieces of glass Nick could feel digging into his side and into his shoulder. He groaned as he stood, being careful not to get glass in his hand as he did so. As he lifted, he shook, ridding his body of bits of broken glass. The gambler glanced about his surroundings, bending a moment later to retrieve his gun off the ground. The place was empty, thankfully, and Nick was sure they'd lost the Tank. Problem was, he'd also lost Ellis in the process. He was peering down the street in both directions, "Shit…" he mumbled, not at all thrilled to be making the trip back to the previous safe house.

"You had damn well better be there, Sport." Nick groaned to himself as he began the walk.

Ellis was making his way out of the apartment building, pistol holstered and hunting rifle propped on his shoulder, with a new companion at his side. The Hunter was following him, and even though he was sure he shouldn't allow it, Ellis couldn't bring himself to shoo the infected away.

The Hunter was standing, walking close enough that if Ellis were to pause in his steps for just a moment, the infected would collide into his back. It made him grin to himself.

It wasn't until they made it out onto the street they had been walking down before did Ellis suddenly realize just how Nick might react to this. Unfortunately, this realization came so abruptly because when he'd stepped out of the apartment complex, Nick was walking down the sidewalk on the other side of the street.

Nick stopped dead in his tracks to look Ellis in the eye. But he only looked at him for a mere fraction of a second before his eyes hurriedly looked to the Hunter standing behind him, its hooded head leaning over Ellis' shoulder to get a better look at Nick, sniffing the air.

"Ellis…" surprisingly though, Nick's voice was eerily calm, though his eyes and body language betrayed him. He was tensed, his hand already palming his gun, "Nick, wait, listen!" Ellis stuck his hand out in front of him, as if he could stop Nick with just his bare hand, "Look Nick, this Hunter ain't attackin' me. Put your gun down. He hadn't even pounced on me." He tried to talk Nick down, wanting to explain the situation to him without getting anyone hurt.

"What… the hell…" was Nick's only reply, though his hand didn't leave from his magnum, he came closer. Albeit slowly and cautiously, Nick came closer, edging his way off the sidewalk and over to Ellis and the Hunter. The Hunter was getting excited Nick was coming over, wanting to get from behind Ellis to probably go smell him as well, but Ellis held him back with a firm hand, "Whoa there, now. Calm down." He cooed to the infected, his hand rubbing down its chest.

Once Nick had gotten close enough, he started to inspect the Hunter, "What do you mean he hasn't attacked you? What'd he do, crawl in your lap and fall asleep? Jesus, Ellis, why'd you even let it get this close…?" Nick had mumbled the questions as he made a slow circle around them. Ellis held the Hunter down with a firm grip on its arm, "My gun got knocked away and I didn't have enough time to get it before he started nuzzlin' up on me. He's real sweet, Nick."

Nick shot Ellis a sneer, "Do you even hear yourself, Ellis? It's a goddamn _Hunter_ we're talking about." He shook his head, now standing at where he started in front of the two, a hand on his cocked hip. "It's amazing the thing hasn't attacked you yet, especially with how much you like to flap your lips, but I'm pretty sure it's going to eventually," Nick pulled his magnum from his holster, "So, without further ado…" and aimed it for the head of the infected that eyed Nick so eagerly.

"Nick! No!" Ellis abruptly leapt forward and grabbed the barrel of Nick's gun and yanked it right out of his hand, "Ellis, what the fuck!?" Nick exclaimed, lunging to try and get his gun back, but Ellis had already shoved it into one of his large, deep jumpsuit pockets, "You ain't doin a damn thing!" Ellis yelled at Nick, still holding back the Hunter by its forearm behind himself.

"I'm tryin to do this peacefully, damn it, but you're makin this hard." He yelled, angrily glaring at Nick. The older man seemed to slowly unbristle, his shoulders falling back into a slouch as he now wearily eyed the excited Hunter, Ellis' obvious anger breaking through his tirade.

"Now _listen,_" Ellis continued and slowly brought the Hunter around in front of him, "I want to keep'em." He told Nick with a sense of finality.

"_Ellis_-" Nick began, but Ellis threw up a hand, "I ain't done…" he stopped him, knowing that Nick would of course have his protests. But Ellis never got to make decisions like these without some degree of difficulty from Nick. Ellis was always the Kid, and Nick was always the one who had the final say. Well not today.

"I know this can be dangerous, but here's the advantage…" Ellis gestured his hand up and down the Hunter's body, as if displaying a product, "He can protect us and keep infected away." Ellis was so damn proud of himself, he probably just out trumped any reasoning Nick might have had against it. He grinned smugly to Nick, triumphant.

Nick on the other hand just rolled his eyes, apparently having a counter for his argument, "Who's to say the Hunter won't join in on the carnage the moment a Charger takes one of us down or a Jockey starts riding us to hell?" Nick argued, his hands going to his hips. Ellis growled, running a hand down his face. "Can we at least go somewhere safe to discuss this…?"

Nick snorted, "Yea, sure. But that Hunter stays outside." "Nick, c'mon now…" Ellis complained, Nick was being unfair. Nick shook his head, "If the thing wants to stay it'll probably wait right outside for us." Nick then eyed the infected who had gone silent since they started arguing. He had been looking from Nick to Ellis every time they spoke up, swiveling his head. Nick scowled at it as the Hunter eyed him curiously. Nick had a sinking feeling he would lose this battle.

As they walked, Nick made sure to stay ahead of Ellis and the infected, not wanting to be a part of that. They soon arrived at the previous safe house and as Nick stepped inside he turned, but then groaned and walked off after he realized Ellis was talking to the infected. "Now listen, don't you worry. I'll let you in as soon as we're done, okay?" Ellis gave the infected a pet on its head, disheveling its dark hair once again. The Hunter growled happily, nuzzling his hand back for a moment and made for the entrance, expecting to come inside with Ellis. But the mechanic had to redirect the infected by the arm, tugging him gently back outside, "Now, what did I say, huh?" he sadly patted at his cheek, "This'll only take a second." He then quickly stepped inside and shut the safe house door.

The Hunter gave a whimper, lowering to sit frog-like, then very much like a lonely puppy began to scratch at the door.

Ellis gave an "Awwe… Nick, how can you say no to that?" he asked almost rhetorically as he peered from out the bars of the window of the door to the Hunter.

Nick grimaced, "Easily." He tapped his fingers against his magnum then folded his arms over his chest, unhappy. He then brought up an argument that seemed far off course and was sort of a futile one. Nick was now sure he'd never get Ellis to ditch the infected, but his pride wouldn't let him stop trying.

"How are we supposed to fuck with that thing around?" Nick tapped his fingers against his arms, hoping that this would somehow change his mind… but he found himself doubting it.

Ellis began to chuckle, shaking his head, "You jealous, Nick?" he asked teasingly, giving Nick a half lidded grin from the door. Nick rolled his eyes, "Only if you start fucking it. And from the looks of things, it doesn't look like you're that far off." He accused, sounding indifferent, but yea. He was kind of jealous. Had they even shared a kiss today? When was the last time Ellis ran his fingers through Nick's hair like that? Yea, it pissed Nick off when he would mess up his hair for seemingly no reason, but he found himself missing the annoying affection.

Ellis' grin grew wider, "Awe, Nick…" Ellis could sense his feelings right away. Nick was an open book to him, a book that had been hard to read in the beginning, but he soon grew fluent with the time they spent with each other. He came over to his older lover and sweetly pecked him on the cheek, "You got nothin' to be jealous about." Then set a hand to the man's roughly stubbled cheek and stroked his skin with his thumb.

Nick was weak against Ellis' sugary sweetness. He relented and slowly wrapped his arms around Ellis' waist, "Better not let that thing eat me alive…" He grumbled in a low voice, then leant down and kissed Ellis, nibbling softly at his lip. Ellis smiled wide, knowing he'd won, kissing Nick back and shivering as he savored Nick's teething.

"RrrrrRAAAAGH!" came a despondent cry from outside. Apparently the Hunter was tired of waiting, soft scratches at the door a distress signal from the infected.

Ellis smirked, "Im gonna let the big baby in. Let him get used to you." He told Nick, giving him another quick kiss before darting for the door. Nick was weary to have the infected so close to him, the wounds on his back from previous Hunter attacks starting to ache as he just thought about it touching him. Soon, he had no choice, because Ellis opened the safe house door and the Hunter came crawling in, a happy smile on its hooded face.

Nick narrowed his eyes at the Hunter, just daring it to try something. He could draw his magnum in a second. He was so used to the motion he was practically a sharp shooter by now.

But the Hunter didn't make to pounce, instead he sniffed the ground leading up to Nick's feet, then sniffed at the man's leg. Nick grit his teeth, eyeing down at the infected, trying to steel himself if it did attack. Trying to stay tense as not to feel the pain, but wanting to stay loose so he could grab for his weapon as necessary.

But the need never arose once the Hunter stood and practically buried his nose into Nick's jacket, smelling his chest, prompting the gambler to give a, "Hey, hey, watch it!" raising his arms somewhat. The Hunter gave a grumble, nuzzling his nose into the man's soft jacket insides, looking like he were trying to hide in the man's coat. Nick gave an annoyed glare to the Hunter fumbling around, scratching at his inside pocket as Ellis began to giggle.

"Oh, he _likes_ you, Nick." He teased playfully, grinning ear to ear at the Hunter's display. Nick groaned when the Hunter left his jacket but then went to his back where he sniffed at his hair, exploring the new human as much as he wanted, putting his face in his hair as he gripped at his shoulders from behind.

Then, surprising Nick and even Ellis, the Hunter hopped and latched himself onto the gambler's back where he gripped him with his legs and arms to stay that way. "WHAT THE HELL." Nick complained, his wide eyes incredulous. Ellis began to laugh, slapping his knee, "That's damn cute, man."

The Hunter nibbled at the back of Nick's coat collar, seemingly fascinated. As he shimmied and squirmed on Nick's back, something fell out of its hoodie pocket. A wallet.

As Ellis calmed down from his amusement, he noticed the worn leathery article on the ground close to Nick's feet. His brow raised as he stepped over, "Hey…"

Nick was swatting at the Hunter's cheek, "I am not a damn chew toy you big baby." He growled, trying to shake the infected off his back, but to no avail. The Hunter only tightened his legs and growled back.

"I think this is his wallet." Ellis announced, opening it and taking a glance at its contents. Nick gave a look to Ellis, "Oh great, now we can see if he's an organ donor." Then groaned when the Hunter grabbed at his hair and gave a tug, "Goddamn it…"

Ellis glanced from the wallet to the Hunter, but seeing as how his face was covered by the shadow of his hood, he couldn't tell if the dark haired man in the I.D. picture was him or not. So, he came up beside Nick and grabbed the Hunter by the chin, turning his face toward him then stripped off his hood. His face was free of any blood that wasn't his, and his cuts looked to be accidentally self-inflicted. They looked like he scratched too hard at a sore. But underneath his infected face and confused yellow eyes, the Hunter looked to be the man on the I.D.

Ellis smiled, "Nick, put'em down. I have an idea." Ellis stepped a few paces back from Nick, putting some space between them. Nick didn't have any problem with grabbing the infected by the arms and yanking them off of him. Quickly after, the Hunter hopped off his back and landed back on the ground, panting slightly as he looked about the safe room curiously.

Nick huffed, putting his hands to his hips, his suit coat hitching back as he did so, "What's your idea, Sport." He asked, sounding exhausted. Ellis grinned, looking back to the I.D. then to the infected. "Tate." He called.

Miraculously, the Hunter's head snapped quickly to Ellis, looking as if… well, as if Ellis had called his name. He looked expectant, waiting for anything further, his form paused.

Ellis gave a, "Holly shit!" and chuckled, "He still knows his name, Nick." He told the gambler, chuckling excitedly and coming up to Tate and rubbing his hands through his hair, rewarding the infected with affection. Nick sighed, "Well that sucks. I wanted to name the little fella' Shit Eater." The cantankerous man grumbled, then without waiting for any reply he turned and headed for a place to lie down.

Ellis had hardly heard Nick's grumpy mumbles over Tate's happy purrs as he enjoyed the petting. Ellis couldn't decide if the Hunter was more like a dog or more like a cat. So, he decided he was neither. "You're just sweet'ol Tate." He cooed to the infected, tickling under his chin for a moment before chuckling when Tate gave a playful bite to his fingers.

Nick found a bathroom and proceeded to sink down on the toilet seat cover where he ran his hands down his face with a deep sigh. He hated being in long term relationships for multiple reasons. There were too many problems and issues, but one of the more prominent problems was he hated when they wanted to get a pet together. Nick, for one, hated animals and their shedding fur and secondly, you might as well have slapped a baby in his arms for all the work and care they need. But being in a relationship with Ellis had never been a problematic one, apart from keeping it secret from the others.

He just never thought Ellis would be the one to force him into getting a pet.


	2. Chapter 2

Their safe house was a small one bedroom apartment with one of the living room walls knocked out, successfully connecting two small apartments to make a much larger one. The door to the second apartment was their exit, leading them through the back alleys of the town they occupied. Nick was tense, sitting on a barstool staring out the small safe house window, for a few reasons. The one less obvious was the fact that the Tank was still out there somewhere.

If it were quiet, and if Nick listened hard enough, he could swear he heard it tromping around, somewhere deeper in town. Or maybe he'd catch an angry roar or yell far off in the distance. It might be his head playing tricks on him, but the monster could very well be still in town. He was just waiting for the Fucker to come and try to beat their safe house door down. He'd be waiting.

The other reason, the one that was now a subtle underlining to his conscious, was _Tate_. Ellis hadn't stopped playing with the damn Hunter since he figured out his name. It made Nick roll his eyes every time he heard, "Do you love me, Tate?" then the Hunter would give a playful growl, "Yea? Good Boy!" or "Give daddy some sugar~" and Ellis actually let the thing lick his face. What the hell.

Whatever, Nick was done with that. He'd let Ellis have his little buddy if that meant he was spared the boredom of the Kid's Keith stories. He just made sure to keep an eye on the Hunter, in case the infected did ever come to its right mind. He'd give him one right between the eyes.

It had been getting dark for the past few minutes, but after Nick blinked he realized just how dark it actually was. By this point, there would have been street lamps flickering with light, anticipating the dark night to come. But with no power through the town, the lamps stayed unlit, their glass eyes blank, and sightless. That also meant that with no power, once the sun went down, they wouldn't have any more light. So that meant getting ready to sleep, even if it were still early in the afternoon.

Nick could use that extra sleep, anyway. He felt close to having an aneurism.

He then turned from the window to glance back at Ellis…. To see him tickling the Hunter's belly. The infected laid on its back on the couch as Ellis ran his hands under his hoodie to give tickling scratches at his abdomen, making the Hunter give huffing giggles and squirm, his arms and legs trying to push at Ellis' hand to get it away. Ellis giggled right along with Tate, having a jolly old time.

It made Nick scowl.

"If you need me, I'll be in bed. I suggest you hurry up and join me before you're running around in the dark." He told Ellis, not even looking over as he kept heading for the bedroom. He heard, "Alright, Nick." Through breathless giggles. And Nick rolled his eyes again, closing the door behind him as he made it to the bedroom.

"Damn Hunter…" he mumbled. He took off his gold rings, setting them in his inner coat pocket then started taking off his shoes once he sat on the edge of the bed, "Damn Ellis…" he mumbled once he'd thrown his shoes off and started tugging his coat off to throw across the room's arm chair. He gave a sigh, staring down at the ground between his bare feet. "If only you could see us now." He mumbled lastly. He would pay money to see Coach and Rochelle's reaction to Ellis' new companion.

But then again, he was sure they'd never see them again. He needed to convince Ellis some more, so they could hopefully get out of this town before a Jockey or a Smoker decided to join in on the fun. Or worse. Before they could run into that Tank again. Nick shook his head, tired and cranky. He then began to unbutton his blue dress shirt, sliding the article off his arms in the soft light of the setting sun and slung it over with his coat. He then slung his legs over the side and laid back on the bed, lifting his hips to unbutton then slide his pants off, kicking them off the end of the bed carelessly. His whole suit was a wreck, so there was no point in trying to maintain it any longer. A sad, sad fact for Nick.

Just as he began getting underneath the blanket, he heard soft growling and Ellis' cooing voice, "Awe, you tired, Tate? You wanna go to sleep?" Nick rolled his eyes then turned over in bed, away from the door. He figured Ellis would fashion a bed out of a basket and blankets for the Hunter, making him chuckle, but then the bedroom door opened.

Nick glanced over his shoulder and watched Ellis kick off his work boots and start to strip to his orange briefs, closing the bedroom door behind himself. "I'm gonna have to give you a bath, Mr. Stinky." He mumbled to the infected, eliciting a small growl and yelp, still sounding excited and playful. Ellis chuckled, "Ooh, it ain't gonna be so bad." He reassured the uncomprehending infected. After tugging off his own shirt, Ellis reached down and gave little tugs at the infected's arms, "C'mon, stand up for me." He mumbled, and the infected acted on Ellis' tugging arms, standing to his full height. Ellis chuckled, "Good boy." Then began to tug the infected's hoodie up.

"Uhh…" Nick finally spoke up, getting his attention, "Just where in the fuck is he gonna sleep?" he asked, turning over fully in bed, incredulous scowl deep set in place. Ellis looked from Nick to Tate, and apparently just then it finally occurred to Ellis the predicament. He sucked his teeth, dropping his hands to his hips, "Fine." Then went back out into the living room.

Nick sighed, shaking his head as he looked to Tate. But instead of following Ellis like he assumed he would have, the Hunter gave a grin to Nick and began crawling over to him. Nick's eyes went wide for a moment, "Hey, keep your distance, Tate!" he grumbled at the infected.

Back in the living room, Ellis gathered up blankets and some worn looking pillows for Tate. He was a little aggravated, all he wanted was Tate to sleep at the end of the bed, like any normal pet. But then again, he figured Nick never had a pet growing up. And he maybe just didn't want the Hunter in the same bed with him. Either way, Ellis was still aggravated.

He took the blankets and pillows back into the bedroom, tucked under his arm, but once he made it back, he dropped the whole bundled in a fit of laughter. Tate had climbed up into the bed with Nick and was apparently trying to cuddle with him, but Nick was not about to have any of that. Tate was trying to lay down beside Nick, but the gambler was pushing him on the back, trying to shove him off the bed with arms and legs.

"Get this damn thing off the bed!" Nick yelled in frustration. All Ellis could do was give a weak nod through his laughter, then motioned at Tate with a limply waving hand, "Down boy…" and began laughing uproariously again, holding his gut. It was the cutest thing he'd ever seen.

Luckily, with just Ellis' presence, the Hunter was willing to hop down from the bed and happily nuzzle into Ellis' naked leg. "He just wants Lovin' Nick. He wouldn't be so needy if you pet him every now and then." Ellis tried to reason, one hand going down to pet through the Hunter's dark hair. The Hunter reacted with purrs and more nuzzling, even a tiny lick to Ellis' knee. "See?" Ellis then looked up to Nick.

But Nick was still frowning like a grouch. "I don't give a flying fuck _what _it wants. Keep it away from me, Ellis." Nick glared down at the Hunter, "This is your only warning. Next time I'll do more than swat at him with a newspaper." Nick warned sternly.

Ellis sighed, his party officially pooped. "Fine, fine, fine. Whatever." Ellis huffed, picking back up the blankets and carrying them over to the side of the bed. He laid out the blankets in a circle, then put the pillows down like a little barrier around the blankets then called the Hunter over, "Tate, c'mere." He mumbled, then the Hunter did as he was told, and laid down in the circle of pillows and blankets with a purr. Then Ellis set the last pillow on top of the Hunter's exposed side, "There. You comfy?" he asked in his baby voice.

The Hunter responded by nuzzling its face into the pillows, purring loudly. Ellis grinned, petting at the Hunter a few more times before he finally climbed into bed himself. Nick had turned back over, facing the wall, and Ellis wanted him to face back his way, to get Nick to hold him like usual. He tugged a little on his shoulder, but Nick shoved his hand away with his shoulder, "You don't need me to fall asleep." He mumbled, half-heartedly rejecting Ellis.

Ellis' face pinched up in annoyance, "You better turn around before I pin you down and I _make_ you hold me." Ellis warned in a low tone. He rarely threatened Nick like that, and Nick was well aware he was more than capable of doing exactly what he said he would. He learned that the hard way. So, with a sigh, Nick shifted in bed and turned back onto his other side, facing Ellis, a bit annoyed. Ellis grinned before he nestled into Nick's body, one arm draping over his waist, and the other folding up and laid on the pillow, his head resting atop it as he gave soft kisses to Nick's jaw.

Slowly, the peace baring kisses melted through Nick's ice, and the gambler gave a sigh. Then, only slightly begrudgingly, he began to kiss back, pressing back on the mechanic's lips sweetly. Ellis gave small, muffled giggles, tangling his legs with Nick as he got comfortable.

Once the two of them had gotten settled into one another's bodies, their breathing began to slow, and Nick's hand found its way to the back of Ellis' head, just cradling it. Soon their eyes closed for the night, the both of them getting much needed sleep.

It was only until Nick felt warm sun shine on his cheeks did he begin to regain consciousness. His eyes crinkled as he tried to fight it off for a few moments, but he finally relented and began to yawn, his hand, still in Ellis' hair, began to softly massage the back of his head. Nick then grinned lightly as he leant forward, wanting to kiss Ellis awake, knowing he loved it when he did that.

But then the light that had shown on his face was suddenly blocked by something.

The Hunter had found its way up on to the bed anyway, and had curled up in the small niche at the back of Ellis' legs, and once it had heard Nick stirring, he had awoken too, sitting up and leaned over Ellis to stare at Nick with a happy grin. A sight that came very unwelcome to Nick.

"Tate…" he nearly growled it, not wanting to be too loud, in fear of waking Ellis before he got the chance to do it the way he wanted. He didn't want him waking up to Nick yelling at the Hunter. "Get down…" he strained to be loud enough through clenched teeth. But it seemed the Hunter wasn't getting the message. Instead, it crawled over Ellis' and Nick's legs till it was now on Nick's side of the bed and began crawling toward Nick.

"_Tate_…." He growled warningly, half a second away from swatting at the Hunter but before he could, Ellis began to shift. Nick's attention went back to Ellis' face, and to his dismay, he was waking all on his own volition.

"Mmm, Nick…what'chu doin?" Ellis' half coherent speech was heartwarming, especially when he hadn't even opened his eyes yet, just lazily moving his legs as he smacked his lips a few times, his hands clenching tighter on Nick. The gambler grinned regardless of his foiled plot, and began kissing Ellis' sleepy face anyway.

"I'm trying to keep the mangy mutt off the bed." He mumbled, his usual venom lessened to a degree due to the circumstances. And those circumstances being the fact that Ellis was grinning and trying to hide his lips away from Nick, giggling as he buried his face in Nick's chest. Nick purred to himself as he ran his hand through Ellis' messy hair.

He had almost completely forgotten about the Hunter, until the infected started to feel left out of the hugs and kisses.

"Rrrrauugh…" Tate complained, followed by a small whimper. Of course, that's when Ellis decides to peek out from Nick's chest to look for the Hunter.

"Awwe, Tate, you want some lovin's too?" Ellis cooed to the infected, one hand reaching out from the warm cocoon of their bodies to pet through Tate's hair. The infected purred then crept closer to nuzzle his face on Ellis' covered body then licked at his face, earning him some giggles from Ellis. The mechanic then held Tate's face with one hand as he gave the infected a kiss on the cheek. "Alright now, get." He told the infected and playfully swatted at his behind. Of course Nick knew it was coming, but he hadn't expected to feel so jealous… So when the Hunter wiggled its body happily and hopped off the bed to scamper through the bedroom, Nick snatched Ellis back by the back to seal a kiss on his lips, in a childish way stating his dominance.

"Im gonna work on breakfast." Nick mumbled after the kiss was broken, his voice void of humor or enthusiasm. Ellis gave a lopsided grin, then gave him a small peck on the lips, "You mad I gave away some of your sugar?" Nick didn't need to give an answer, and instead his blossoming frown gave him away, prompting Ellis to give a sympathetic chuckle and rub his hands along Nick's stubbled cheeks.

"Whatever. Let me go so I can cook." He grumbled, averting his eyes to the door. Ellis gave a pat to one of Nick's cheeks, "Sure, babe." Then shifted to lay on his back, allowing Nick to escape. The gambler was quick to scale over Ellis' body, receiving a gentle touch on his hip as he passed over the mechanic below him. He wasn't sure what he'd be able to whip up, given their limited supplies and resources that would resemble a traditional breakfast, but after having gone through this for some time now, sticking to tradition wasn't a priority.

As he got to the door, he made a sweeping motion with his foot, getting the Hunter to jump back a bit from him so he could open the door, noting how the Hunter gave a long glance to him as he passed through the door way. Whatever. Let the little Home Wrecker stare. He had to get working on some food, anyway. He knew how much more crankier he could get if he didn't eat properly in the morning. He knew it wouldn't be fair to Ellis if he subjected him to a Pissy Nick.

Ellis sighed, propping himself up on his elbows as he watched Nick go. Waking up wasn't as bad as he'd dreamt it would. He half expected to be woken up to the sounds of little Tate getting gagged by a furious Nick, or maybe even fussing and more wrestling with Tate trying to sneak kisses on Nick without the elder's consent. The latter made Ellis smirk and give a small huff of a chuckle.

He then looked to Tate, giving a kissing sound in the air to call him over, then affectionately ran his hands through the grinning Hunter's hair as he came close. "You hungry…?" he first asked, but as he kept scratching through his hair…

"Ya'know what… I'd better give you a bath first…" he openly mused as he tried not to gag on the almost caustic stench coming off the Hunter once he'd rustled it up. In fact, that's exactly what Ellis felt like doing at the moment. He's sure he'd get no objections from Nick about the idea of cleaning Tate, though he's sure it'd be the only thing they agreed on.

"C'mon Tate, let's get you washed." He mumbled, smiling to the Hunter as he got up and out of bed.

In the kitchen, Nick went through cupboards, looking for anything he could scrounge up to eat. There were a couple cans of miscellaneous random goods, like water chestnuts and qeso-dip. He frowned, lips forming a taut line as he thought of the combination and it's flavor. He then shoved them to the back, looking for something else, trying not to be picky, but at the same time, Nick still had a limit.

Just as Nick found a can of Italian Wedding soup, he heard Ellis talking to the Hunter, "Trust me, you'll thank me when I get all that dirt out'a your face." Nick quirked an eyebrow, watching Ellis lead Tate into the bathroom. Just before the bathroom door closed, Nick spoke up, "Are you givin him a bath, or something?" Ellis chuckled, "Hell yea, man. You smelt him, right?" he shook his head, going back to coursing Tate into the bathroom, talking over his shoulder, "I can't deal with that shit no more." That got Nick to chuckle, "Second that…" he mumbled, looking back to his can.

In the bathroom, Ellis gave a sigh, now trying to figure out how he was going to do this, flipping the night switch and closing the door behind himself. The Hunter was wandering, curiously sniffing at items on the counter or trying to swipe something off and onto the floor, reminding Ellis of a cat. He grinned.

He then went over to the tub, looking over the shower curtain and dubbing it useless and a possible hazard and took down the shower curtain rod all together, then started to wrap the curtain around the rod to put it aside. He'd washed enough home pets to know their tactics of escape, and having a shower rod fall on his head from multiple attempts of a German Shepard trying to jump out was not fun.

Once the curtain was out of the way, he then reached into the tub and turned the knobs, tampering with the temperature a bit to make it comfortable. The Hunter then started taking interest, its head popping up beside Ellis, looking into the tub. One tumored hand came up and into the tub to feel at the water, and once he'd realized it was just water, he reclaimed his hand, turning around to keep exploring.

Ellis grinned back at the Hunter, then began undressing. This was either going one of three ways. Either Tate was going to let Ellis wash him willingly with no problems, or he'd put up a fight, throwing water everywhere, or Ellis would have to get in there with him, and force wash him. Ellis had a strong feeling it wasn't going to be the first one, so to save his clothes from getting wet he took them off, right down to his underwear, and hung them over the railing, away from the tub.

Now came the tricky part.

"Tate, c'mere. Stand up for me." He urged, grabbing at his hands and pulling them up. Tate moved as instructed, his bright eyes curious. Ellis then let go of his hands in favor of getting his dark blue hoodie off, starting by putting his hands underneath the material, feeling a second layer, his shirt, and making sure to catch that too, and pulled up. At first, Tate was confused, but then started to get the idea, and as if to help, with a swift motion Ellis almost didn't comprehend, Tate slunk out of his shirt and hoodie, his arms sliding out perfectly as he crouched down.

Ellis was shocked, not suspecting such a quick motion but then began to laugh, shaking his head, "You're crazy!" he cooed to the Hunter, setting the hoodie and shirt onto the closed lid of the toilet and petting the Hunter. This time, without being assisted, the Hunter stood up on his own, giving Ellis a full view of his chest. It was free of scars or injury, and seemed spotless, even lacking many of the tell-tell markings of being infected, like the tumors. Ellis was starting to see the signs pointing to why Tate was so friendly.

He wondered if there were other infected like Tate out there. He wondered if they'd found companions like Tate had. He then found himself hoping they weren't getting hurt. He realized that he didn't think he could ever hurt Tate now, once he'd gotten so attached to him. He looked into the Hunter's yellow eyes, smiling sadly. "You're such a good boy." He whispered, patting his cheek.

He then got back to business, reaching down and tugging down at the Hunter's baggy sweat pants. To his utter shock and surprise though, instead of running into a pair of boxers or briefs, he found a pair of lacey black women's panties. They had a lace pattern of floral decoration, exposing much of his pubic area and the very beginning of his manhood, obviously not big enough to fit all of it.

He slowly looked back up to the Hunter, meeting his uncomprehending eyes.

"What were you into, Tate…"


	3. Chapter 3

Ellis didn't even know 'what' 'why' or 'how' about this Hunter, and the women's under wear seemed to be the cherry on top. He merely shook his head and helped Tate out of his lacey panties. Though, soon after, he'd wished he hadn't.

"Oh GOD, what the fuck have you been sittin' in?" Ellis covered his nose with his forearm as he had to back a step away from the stench emitting from the Hunter's privates. It was odd how the simple bit of clothing had shielded the awful aroma from Ellis' senses, and he found himself in disbelief as to how that was even possible.

Ellis quickly slipped around the Hunter and turned off the still running water and made sure the temperature was okay for him. He then grabbed Tate by the arm and dragged him close, mumbling, "Get your tail over here, nasty." And made him step into the tub. At first the Hunter growled, peering down at the water like a foreign object for some time before looking back up at Ellis as if expecting a reason for being there.

Ellis sighed, realizing he might just have to get in the tub with him just so things could go more smoothly. "Alright, just this once I'mma get in here with you. But then you gotta learn how to sit on your own, hear me?" he questioned the Hunter who only grinned in response. Ellis then took off his night shorts and thin shirt and got in with the Hunter. He then held the Hunter by the forearms and began to sat, slowly.

"Okay, come and sit with me, alright? Just like this…" He cooed, glad to see the Hunter mimicking him. Soon, the both of them were seated in the warm water, and Ellis was treated with watching the Hunter wriggle and squirm with delight at the sensation. Apparently Tate liked baths.

"Good boy." He rewarded the Hunter with pets and strokes through his hair. Ellis was so relieved he could finally wash out the grim that had been greeting his nails every time he went through his scalp. "Now come on." He mumbled and grabbed up a bar of soap out of the soap dish on the side of the tub. The first order of business was his upper body, and Ellis began splashing water up gently on to the Hunter's chest, back and sides and followed by scrapping the soap along the same, moistened areas. Once he'd gotten it all soaped up, he then reached over and grabbed a rag off the edge of the sink counter and soaked it in the water and used it to scrub against the Hunter's skin. Soon, dirty rivulets began to dribble down the Hunter's body, sinking into the water that slowly began to turn dirty itself. Ellis tried not to think too hard about it.

Once he'd gotten his visible areas done, Ellis moved to the Hunter's pits, scrubbing the cloth along the area to moisten it then applied the soap. He went through the Hunter's body this way, washing away the dirt gradually with gently motions. It was when Ellis began scrubbing at the back of the Hunter's neck that Tate began to purr, his lids closed and head dipped to allow Ellis more access. The survivor beamed, mentally fawning over the Hunter's cuteness but then pouted that he had to stop. Once he did, the Hunter looked back up to him, watching his hands move and grab up a bottle and squeeze a liquid in his open palm.

Ellis then stood and maneuvered around the Hunter until he was behind him, sitting back down and began splashing water into the Hunter's hair. Every so often, the Hunter whipped his head about, sending water flying for a few moments, but it wasn't as bad as if a dog would have done it. Soon Ellis began messaging the shampoo into Tate's hair, gathering it all up and distributing the soap evenly all throughout and gradually worked up some suds. "You're gonna feel so good after I'm done, Sugar." He chuckled to himself, and grinned as the Hunter began to purr again.

For a moment, Ellis wondered if Tate had fallen asleep, because his head would bob along with the way Ellis' hands maneuvered it, just swaying with the motions it was directed in with the washing. He was so endeared, he leaned forward and gave the Hunter a kiss on his shoulder, "You're so cute." He mumbled lowly.

After he'd gotten the hair into a soapy mess of white suds he had a bit of fun by forming the Hunter's hair into different shapes, at one point giving him a Mohawk. "This could be a good look for you." He joked, and grinned to the Hunter as he tried to look up at his own hair and only succeeded in staring at the ceiling.

Ellis shook his head and began washing out the suds, sending his fingers through the much softer hair. Once it'd gotten cleared out, he untucked his crossed legs and scooted further up, Tate becoming seated in his lap. He then reached around and uncurled the Hunter's legs as well. The next part of the wash would be the most embarrassing part. Though for Ellis or Tate, he didn't know.

He grabbed the bar of soap and sank it into the water, carrying it around to the Hunter's front, where he planned to use it. Slowly, as to not to startle the Hunter, Ellis slid the soap along his abdomen, and worked his way lower. The Hunter began to purr again, relaxing to the touch and even began to lean back, allowing Ellis to wash even further. Thankfully, Ellis was seated at the back of the tub, so he could lean back all the way until they were both lounged comfortably in the tub. He grinned, glad this was going to swimmingly, hoping this wouldn't be a disaster like he planned for and confidently trudged forward.

Though, when Ellis ran the soap in the general vicinity of the Hunter's pubic area, the Hunter went tense. "Calm down, it's okay, I got'cha." He cooed to the Hunter, right into his ear to sooth him, "It's gonna be done soon." He promised the Hunter. He then ran the soap around and under the Hunter's penis, trying to be quick about it but not trying to be too quick as to jolt the Hunter any further.

The Hunter's response was to take a grip on Ellis' arms, not hurting him, and not even all that tightly, just a firm grip that didn't pull them away. Ellis swallowed, hoping to not agitate Tate into getting uncomfortable and flailing around. He scrubbed the soap around the Hunter's balls for a moment, wanting to be thorough, and didn't expect the reaction he got there after, which was a simple noise the Hunter made, "Raaeerrrrr…" it wasn't a growl, or a whimper… but simply a little noise. When Ellis went to pull his hand away, not wanting to press his luck, he was even further surprised to feel the Hunter's grip tighten, disallowing him from doing so.

"Tate…?" he mumbled.

It was then that he noticed the Hunter's breathing had picked up, his chest lightly heaving. He tried pulling his hand away again, and this time the Hunter whimpered, squeezing tighter on his arm. Ellis was starting to get a sinking feeling that he'd rustled something in the Hunter that he might have to finish.

To find out, Ellis dropped the soap to the bottom of the tub and felt for the Hunter's penis, and sure enough, he'd gotten a semi formed from the light touches. Ellis grinned despite it, and began to tease the Hunter, "Has it been a long time, darlin'?" he purred in his ear while he gripped more firmly at the Hunter's hard-on. "Don't worry, daddy's got'chu." He cooed and began to slowly pump the Hunter in the warm water.

The Hunter replied with a louder sound, more akin to a moan, and arched his back slightly, his head falling back to rest on Ellis' shoulder. Ellis chuckled, shaking his head, "This is too crazy." He mumbled. It wasn't until that moment that any of Ellis' actions turned sexual, not even caring that they were both naked men in a tub, and he began noticing things about the Hunter that he hadn't before, like his nice set of rock hard abs or how the muscles lined along his back felt good on Ellis' chest.

Or how damn big the Hunter was getting.

Ellis peered down at the cock in his hand and was impressed to see how much it had grown from its average size when it was soft. "Damn, Tate." He mumbled. It was then that he told himself that it was alright if he enjoyed himself a little too. It wasn't weird to relieve your pet, right? It was even mandatory for their health in some cases. So why couldn't Ellis relieve an infected, who wasn't a pet, but merely a sick person?

So, Ellis craned his neck and began kissing along the Hunter's neck, making him twitch both in his hand and where his lips had meet his skin. He used his other hand to sink further than the one occupied and began toying with the Hunter's balls, softly messaging them with his fingers as his thumb played with the slit of the Hunter's erection.

Tate bucked in his hand and whimpered a bit louder, then hissed in delight as Ellis ran his tongue along the Hunter's freshly cleaned neck. The hands gripping at Ellis' arms grew tighter, unbearably tight, and he realized the Hunter most be close already, and with the hand on his balls moving up and out of the water to cover the Hunter's mouth for his impending mewls, Ellis sped his jerking motions and encouraged the Hunter on, "There you go, baby, you got it, you got it, just a little more…"

The Hunter's hand had followed with Ellis' over his mouth but didn't attempt to move it, but merely held on as his whimpers got louder, though muffled, and finally, finally, the Hunter came, bucking wildly for a moment and curling inward, twitching with electricity that zapped through his little body. Ellis kissed at the Hunter's neck, soothingly, stroking him more softly now to coax the last remaining bit out of him, "Shhh, shhh, that's a good boy. That's my Tate. You did good, baby." He cooed in his ear, looking down and becoming amazed at the amount of ejaculate that now floated in the water. "Damn."

Ellis then slowly removed his hand from over the Hunter's mouth, the infected panting heavily now with eyes half lidded. For a moment, Ellis allowed the both of them to sit there, and cradled Tate in his arms. "That wasn't such a bad bath, right?" he mumbled with a chuckle, his arms tightening a bit around the Hunter's body as he hugged him closer. "You got a happy endin' and everything."

Ellis would not think of this as a weird experience, because for one, it's not like he didn't do the same damn thing for Nick every now and then, and two, there was something very odd about the way he enjoyed that so much that he wouldn't allow himself to think of it in any other way.

If he could give a hand-job to Nick, he could give a hand-job to Tate. And it wasn't cheating because Tate was an infected…right?

As Ellis stared at the faucet head in front of them, the Hunter softly purring as he napped in his arms, he decided Nick didn't need to know any of this even happened.


End file.
